Working With Big Business Isn’t Always the Way for Foundations to Achieve Their Goals

By Phil Buchanan

Ty Wright for The Chronicle
Detroit’s Eastern Market is the largest public market in the country and a key component in efforts to revive the city’s economy. The “grand bargain” partnership among foundations, businesses, and governments to stabilize Detroit’s finances has drawn both praise and criticism.

There’s much talk lately among foundation leaders and major donors about the need to work in collaboration with business. Proclamations about "harnessing the power of the markets," "sector agnosticism," and "blurred boundaries" are now the norm at...